Don't Leave the Office
by Chironex27
Summary: Mike Schmidt has been working as the night guard for Freddy Fazbear's Pizza for several months now, despite the clear danger to his life. Over time, he has become skilled at protecting himself from the animatronics' attacks. However, one night, Mike is forced to leave what he knows as the only safe haven in the restaurant. Rated T for gore and bleeped out language.
1. Hello, my name is Mike

_Don't Leave the Office_

My name is Mike Schmidt, and I'm pretty sure I'm crazy. Two reasons: First reason, I've worked at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. Second reason, I'm still working there. My job is as the night watch security guard. If I was working anywhere else, that would mean that it was my job to keep an eye on the place and keep intruders out. That's not really a problem at Freddy's. I guess you could say we've got a real kickass security system. Not like anyone would ever want to break into a kid's pizzeria. Good for them. Not good for me. I go to work every night at midnight, and for six hours, I keep an eye on the animatronics. They keep an eye on me too. But there's only one of me, and there's four of them…though sometimes it's five. Don't ask. Just don't ask. In the day, Freddy Fazbear, Bonnie the Bunny, Chica the Chicken, and Foxy the Pirate Fox all stand on stage playing corny rehashes of whatever's on the radio to entertain kids eating pizza that tastes like paste spread on cardboard. At night though, they get put into free-roaming mode. Apparently it's to keep their servos from locking up. Keeping an eye on a bunch of animatronics walking around would be weird enough, but I could deal with it, if wandering around was the only thing they did. Every night, I watch those things go from their stages, working their way throughout the store, trying to get to me. If they ever got to me, they'd stuff me inside a Freddy Fazbear suit, which is already stuffed with crossbeams and wiring, making it so that whatever of me that was left would look like hamburger. The guy that worked before me told me in a phone message that it's because they think that I'm an endoskeleton without a suit, which is against store policy, but I'm not so sure. I know that they follow programming of some kind that includes that kind of rule, but I think that there's more. Sometimes, while I watch the animatronics through the security cameras with my tablet, I can see newspaper clippings, stories that talk about the store, about bad things that happened to the store. Kids have been lost here, kids that were never found, though I'm pretty sure that if the owner of the store, Mr. Faz actually cared, he'd find something in those animatronics. Some of the parents have mentioned it, weird smells coming from the animatronics, sometimes leaking blood and mucus. Sometimes, when those things get close enough to the cameras, I can hear them, singing, choking, or laughing. The boss knows. I know he knows.

So why the hell am I still working here? I think that I first started because I needed a job, or I needed the money, or whatever, but those are piss-poor reasons for me now. Besides, I've been doing this for months. It's weird, but apparently you can get used to this kind of thing. After a while, you pick up patterns that the animatronics take. Foxy always starts from behind the curtain, and he works his way from there, and runs to my office. The others are harder, but I've gotten pretty good at getting down a pattern so I get all my bases covered with the cameras. I mean, it makes sense. They're robots, right? They should be predictable. I bet that's what Phone Guy thought. I never really found out the guy's name, so I just call him Phone Guy. He was the guy who left me messages in my first week. Even though I know that guy was a toady for the owner, he did leave me the messages that got me through the first week. Well, he left most of them. He had been working for a while. I bet he was like me. I bet he had gotten used to the job. But every now and then, those things remind me that they aren't just glitchy animatronics. Sometimes they surprise me. A few times, I've run out of power, only pulling through by the skin of my teeth, just making it to 6 AM. I must be crazy to still be working here. Well, maybe I am. But someone's got to do this job. I don't know if those things would ever try to get out, but I don't like to think about what would happen if they did. Not that I could really do anything to stop them if they tried, but maybe just the fact that I'm here keeps them in the store.

But that's not the only thing. People have died here. This store, this entire damn franchise has killed people. Kids have been killed here. I don't care what the management says, they were killed. Kids, and at least two other night guards. I know there was some guy before Phone Guy, at least. People have been killed, and the guys in charge haven't done a damn thing for them. They've just covered it up, hushing up the parents of those kids. If there was anything left, Fazzy's lawyers cleaned it away. That's what I've been doing here. I've been collecting every scrap of newspaper I can get, every memo that's been thrown away, every recorded message I can get my hands on. By this point, with all that the work that I've done, I could seriously pass as a P.I. I don't have enough to sink the company, but I know I've got enough to make Fazzy sweat.

That's what keeps me going, the hope of someday making Fazzy pay. Wish that was the only thing keeping me going, though. My doctor says my lungs look like a worm's dug in and died. Twenty bucks of my pay check goes to the 7/11 down the block. Want to take a guess when I took up smoking? As I'm driving to work today, Freddy shows me something else I've picked up over the past few months.

"IT'S ME."

I only swerve a bit. I'm used to recovering fast enough from the Freddy flashes, but I've never really gotten used to them. Bonnie neither. I don't know why I never see Chica or Foxy. The Freddy Flash snapped me out of something I was humming. Wanna bet a million bucks it was the Toreador March? You'd win that f_ing bet. The thunderstorm that's going on while I unlock the doors doesn't help things either.

...

The animatronics are off their game for a Friday. It's been easy checking up on them. That probably means they're going to try something tonight.

I switch to the East Hall Corner. Chica's glaring up at me.

"Hey Ducky, how's Bugs?"

She doesn't respond, but I know she heard me.

Supply Closet. Bugs Bunny's mirroring Chica.

"What's up, doc? Camera dusty or something?"

Restrooms. I can just make Freddy out.

"How you doin', Freddy? How many kids did you traumatize today?"

Pirate Cove. Foxy's head is peeking out. I don't say anything to him. I kind of want to be nicer to him. He creeps me out the least, maybe it's because I've actually seen him move. I think it's more that I think he's as freaked out by the other animatronics as I am. Part of his endoskeleton is showing. I think that's why he hides and runs. Doesn't want the other animatronics to find him. Still though, that doesn't stop him from trying to get to me.

Still waiting for them to pull something. Friday night's usually the big night. TGIF my ass. I check the West Hall Corner again, keeping my eye off the poster. I've learned you don't want to look at the poster. Ever. I check my left hall light. Nothing. I check my right hall light. Nothing. I check on Foxy. He's not in the Cove

I don't think so Foxy!

I go to the West Hall, but he's not there. I reflexively close the door anyway. No knock. Still at 70%, which is good, but where's Foxy? I check on the Restrooms. Freddy's not there.

"No you don't!"

I check down the route, the Kitchen, East Hall, East Hall Corner. Where the hell is he? I check everywhere. I check the Show Stage. Freddy, Bonnie, and Chica are all in position, staring out over the Dining Area like they're waiting for a show.

"What the?"

They've never done this before. They've never gone _back_ to the stage, at least not all at once. I check the Pirate Cove. This time, I can just make out the tip of Foxy's hook in his starting position.

"What are you bastards planning?"

I keep my eye on them, but they don't move. This has got to be some kind of trick. I put my tablet down, needing to conserve power and take a breath. They're messing with me. I know they are. I look up. The damned fan isn't helping. I look back on the tablet. They're still there. Why are they still there? I check all of the cameras. Restrooms. Nothing. Kitchen. Don't hear anything. East Hall, nothing. East Hall Corner, nothing. West Hall Corner, nothing. West Hall, nothing. Pirate Cove. Foxy. Backstage. Maybe Phone Guy's still there somewhere, but nothing. Dining Area. Something.

Oh sweet Jesus something.

At first I don't register what's going on, because I've never seen anything but Foxy move on these screens. Then I realize that there are five teenagers walking around the Dining Area. They're grinning at each other and giggling. I'm staring at the tablet with my mouth hanging open. Five teenagers broke into the restaurant for fun on their Friday night. Broke through windows that are actually pretty weak on the outside, but strong on the inside to keep anything from getting out. They're going to die.

"No! No! No! No! No!"

What the hell do they think they're doing there? Don't they realize that crouching behind the tables doesn't hide them from the security cameras? Shouldn't they at least realize that they could get arrested for breaking and entering? Shouldn't they realize that they could go to jail?

Can't they realize that they're right in front of three animatronics that want to kill them?


	2. Five Teenagers making a very big mistake

"I can't believe I used to like this place when I was a kid." Pat said.

The animatronics made Kaylee uneasy. They had always looked so cheerful when she was 9. Now though, they were just staring off into space like one of those creepy paintings whose eyes followed you wherever you went.

"C'mon man, where's your sense of fun? This place makes me feel all nostalgic." Gabe answered.

"Clunky songs and pasty pizza makes you feel nostalgic." Carla said.

Kaylee's brother Lee seemed less bothered. He was looking around the restaurant excited, whether it was from the thrill of breaking into a store at night with the upperclassmen or from being somewhere where he had spent so many happy days as a kid.

"Kid, keep your head down, we don't want to get caught." Pat said to him at the front of the line that the five of them made, crouching through the dining room tables.

"Yeah, yeah." Lee answered, Kaylee knowing that he wished people would stop calling him a kid now that he was 14.

Kaylee tried to ask the obvious question.

"What exactly are we trying to do here anyway?"

Gabe looked over his shoulder back at Kaylee.

"We're just having some fun, you don't need to worry."

"You didn't have to come with us." Pat said.

But Kaylee did have to come. Gabe was here. Whether it was just to spend time with her boyfriend, or to make sure that he didn't get into more trouble with Pat and his girlfriend, Kaylee had agreed to come along when Gabe offered. Lee, threatening to tell on them to their parents if they came without him, had come along with them.

Carla whispered to the group.

"Wait, I think I see the camera."

"Oh s_, do you think it's got us?" Pat said.

Of course it had us, Kaylee thought to herself. The night guard had probably seen them a long time before now. What would her parents say to her when they were caught? How mad were they going to get at her for bringing Lee along? They were in so much trouble.

"Hang on; I think we can get around it." Gabe led the group in an indirect path around the tables, which got them to the stage, in front of the animatronics.

"Alright, I think we're good."

Had Pat known that Gabe couldn't see the camera to Bonnie's right he might have hit him in the arm harder than he did then.

"Nice one, man."

Thinking that they were out of view of any more cameras, Carla got up on stage to look closer at the animatronics.

"Hey, this one's Chica, right? I kept on thinking she was a duck when I was a kid."

"Yeah." Gabe said, looking up at Bonnie. "I used to always think that Bonnie was Bugs Bunny."

...

"What do you think you're doing!?" I scream into my tablet. "Don't say that in front of them!"

...

Pat pulled himself on stage next to Carla on stage, smiling at Freddy's face. He looked back at Kaylee.

"You having fun yet?"

"They're animatronics. Did you expect them to sing and dance for you?"

Pat shrugged. "Maybe."

Lee tapped Kaylee on the back.

"Lighten up, sis."

Gabe had gotten up on stage too, looking around it.

"Shouldn't there be an on/off switch somewhere?"

"I don't see anything." Pat answered, looking up and down the stage.

Carla walked in front of Freddy, looking out into the Dining Area from his perspective. She smiled, probably imagining herself on stage. Her grin turned into a smirk.

"You guys heard about the kids that were killed here?"

Gabe rolled his eyes at Carla and waved his hand in dismissal. "Oh, pfft."

"Everyone knows that story, Carla." Kaylee said. "Some guy dressed up in a Freddy Fazbear suit and lured some kids into a back room."

"They caught the guy…" Carla went on, grinning maniacally. "But they ne…"

Lee interrupted her. "Never found the kids, yeah, we know. And they say that people started noticing bad smells coming from the animatronics, and that they noticed blood and mucus leaking from their faces." He recited automatically.

"And they say that sometimes, if you go into a bathroom with the lights out, look in a mirror, and say 'Golden Freddy' three times, he'll appear and stuff you inside a spare suit."

Everyone stared at Carla in disbelief.

"You just made that up." Pat said in finality.

Carla sighed in disappointment and looked at Freddy with her hands on her hips. Lee got up on stage, grinning back at Kaylee, as if saying "Beat you." Pat walked up in front of Bonnie, strumming his guitar. Carla leaned in, looking inside Freddy's mouth, nose wrinkling.

"Guys, this thing really does smell."

"Yeah. Sure." Gabe said dismissively.

Carla's prank was so predictable. Kaylee didn't bother paying attention to her, instead looking at Freddy's face.

Which meant she was the only one to see him blink.

"Guys, I'm telling you that I smell…"

Carla's insistence was cut off when Freddy's jaw slammed down on her face, removing more than her frontal lobe.

The other four stood transfixed at Carla, whose body twitched slightly, and then fell off the stage. Kaylee was about to scream when someone beat her to it.

Bonnie dropped his guitar and grabbed Pat around the neck, screaming in his face. Pat screamed the second later, followed by everyone else.

Fueled by sisterly instinct, Kaylee grabbed Lee by the back of his belt and pulled him off stage, just before Chica could grab him, screaming an ear-splitting screech.

Pat cried and screamed for his life, trying to fight off Bonnie's grip. Freddy grabbed Pat's legs, and he and Bonnie picked up Pat. Gabe, Kaylee, and Lee all ran for their lives, Chica in pursuit.


	3. Breaking rule 1

I can't move from my desk.

"No. Sh_. God, no. Sh_! F_!"

What do I do? What do I do? Why the hell has no one ever told me what to do in this situation? Didn't the management think that this might be important?

Get it together man! Think! Got to think!

Police! Call police!

What the hell do I tell them though? I've learned a long time ago not to tell people what goes on at work. They always think that I'm exaggerating about how creepy the animatronics can get.

No. Don't say that animatronics are killing kids. Tell them that there's been a murder. That'll at least get them to come, hopefully with a big ass shotgun.

I get the phone out. First time ever using it since Phone Guy left his messages.

Nothing. No ring tone. Oh dear God. The storm's knocked out the phone lines.

I look back to the tablet, wanting to do something. I pull up Backstage. I wish I hadn't.

They've got that kid with them. He's screaming and trying to get away. They've got a spare suit with them. I've got to put it down. I've got to put it down, but I don't, thinking that by watching I can somehow help this kid. It's not. The kid begins to realize what's going on and fights harder. Not nearly enough. Freddy and Bonnie push him in head first through the back. I hear the sound of flesh pealing and bones crunching intermingled with the kid's screams of pain. Thankfully, they finally stop. Freddy and Bonnie stare at the kids remains for a little while and then move out.

There are three more. There are three kids somewhere in the store. They're being chased by the animatronics. Eventually, the animatronics will catch them. There's no doubt that they will. No one can help them. There's no one I can get on the phone. The only person they have left is…me.

No. I'm not going out there. Not at night, not while they're still out there. What could I do, anyway? If I couldn't stand against those things in my own office, what could I do outside on their own turf? Those kids were asking for it, breaking in here like this.

Asking to be killed? What am I saying? Just ignore them, the problem will get sorted out on its own, the animatronics will take care of it. I must have an illustrious career in the management if that's my attitude towards people caught in this kind of situation.

Okay, but what can I do? I've got to get those kids into this office. It's safe here, or at least it is with me. I've got to get to those kids somehow and bring them back here. That means going outside my office.

God, why?

I'll need some idea of where they are first. I look on the tablet. They couldn't have gotten that far away from the Dining Area. They probably tried to stay away from the West side of the store too, since that's where the animatronics took their friend. Check East side; Kitchen, no noise, though I guess if they were hiding there, they'd be trying to stay quiet. If I can't find them anywhere else, they've probably hidden themselves in there, maybe trying to hide in the freezer. I check the Restrooms, and I see some movement. Just a bit, but I could see someone's foot slide into one of the restrooms. It's an obvious hiding spot. A really bad one. It's the first place the animatronics will search, right next to the Dining Area. Now I need to find out where the animatronics are. Foxy's still in his Cove. Is he as scared by the activity that's been going on as the kids are? Still though, no way of telling what's he's going to do, better steer clear of him. More of a reason to not go up the West Hall. Dining Area. Nothing. Show Stage. They're all there, in position. Why? Why haven't they spread out to find the remaining kids? I look at the layout of the store on the bottom left corner of the image, trying to get an idea of where they are in relation to the rest of the store. I think I understand them now. From the Show Stage, they've got a view of the entire Dining Area, the center of the restaurant. Anyone trying to go anywhere has to go through the Dining Area. It's connected to both West and East Halls, the Pirate Cove, the Restrooms, Kitchen, and Backstage. If the kids try to head for an exit, they'll pass right in front of them. They're just holding positions until they can figure out a plan of attack. That means if I'm going to do anything, I've got to do it now before they figure out what to do. I'll need to work my way up the East Hall and try to sneak through the Dining Area up to the Restrooms, right in front of them. F_ me.

I put on my backpack, which I carry my two flashlights in. It's a little trick I've learned to cheat in the game I play with the animatronics. With the flashlights, as long as they've got full batteries, and I always make sure that they do, I never have to waste power on the lights for my blind spots. I don't know how I can use them now without giving away my position, but maybe I'll find a use for them. At least I can take the tablet with me.

I turn to the East Hall, and I ignore one of the first bits of advice Phone Guy ever gave me. Don't leave the office. Maybe he should have kept his own advice instead of trying to hide Back Stage.

I keep my lights off and my steps short. I can't give away anything. Somehow, painfully, I make it to the door to the Dining Area. There shouldn't be enough light for the animatronics to notice me coming in, but then again, I'm not sure how much they rely on light anyway. I lean against the doorway, keeping myself away from the door window. I check the tablet again. Chica's gone into the Dining Area. She's staring up at Camera 1B vacantly. Does she know what I'm trying to do? At least she's facing the camera, opposite where I' m entering.

I'm crazy. I know I'm crazy. A sane man wouldn't be working here. A sane man wouldn't have the left the only safe place he knew about, right into the path of a bunch of homicidal animatronic animals.

Well, apparently those kids need a maniac.

Why me?


	4. Seriously, why me?

I test the door, ready to run back to the office, but it doesn't creak. I open it just enough to slip through. God damn. I'm in the same room as the animatronics. Freddy and Bonnie are still on stage and Chica's still staring up at the camera. I can see them, and there's no door or window separating us. Got to stay prone, below the tables. Work my way around the Dining Area.

I hear gears shifting. S_. Chica's moving. Don't move. Just don't move, Mike.

I'm underneath a table. If I bring out my tablet, the light will give me away. Where's Chica looking?

Someone's choking. Did one of the kids get caught again? Wait…where's the sound coming from? Haven't I heard that bef…f_.

Right behind me. Chica's right behind me. All she has to do is tip over the table and I'm screwed. She's still making that f_ing choking sound. Right behind me. Right in my ear. God damn. I'm sweating like a pig. Can they smell me? Are they just messing with me?

There's movement. Footsteps. Big and heavy footsteps. I think that they're moving away but I can't tell. Can't miss this chance though. There's a door on the wall in front of me. Got to hide, got to get my breath back.

I'm in. I'm in. Where? I look around. I turn the tablet on. It gives light, but not too much to give me away. The Kitchen. Damn. One door off. I've got to get moving if I want to get those kids. I check the tablet. Freddy's on stage still, but Bonnie isn't. Dining Area. There he is, but now where's Chica? East Hall. Good. Foxy? Still in the Cove. Maybe he can tell that I'm not in my office. Can any of them? Damn. What if Chica goes to the office and hides herself there? Well, then we're all f_ed. Come to think of it, if she's still in the East Hall by the time I get the kids, we won't be able to get to the office at all. We'll have to go down the West Hall, past Foxy. Maybe that's for the best. Still though, they've got us all pretty well boxed in.

What the hell am I going to do? Did I really think it would be that easy to sneak around the store like this?

I've got time to breath. I can think more now. I don't see any path that I take that doesn't put me close to an animatronic. I can't take the risk that I can just go right underneath their noses again, not without being prepared somehow to deal with them.

I can't believe I'm thinking this. This is the only thing Phone Guy didn't need to tell me not to do, because it comes down to common sense. I'm thinking of going head-to-head against one of those things. A 500 pound robot with the personality of a psychopathic child. How else am I going to get past Chica?

I look around the Kitchen. Maybe a knife? Yeah, it'll probably be easier if I just slit my wrists here that try to stab a metal animatronic. It'd probably just get caught in their suits anyway. I walk around, staying prone. There's a rolling pin on one of the counters. I grab it. Probably won't do anything more than piss them off, especially in my shape (Thank you again, Mr. Marlboro, and thank you Mr. Fazbear for introducing us.) Seriously, think! What's in this Kitchen that I can use? I look everywhere, for anything. There are a few knives that won't do anything, my rolling pin that won't do anything, and pizza ingredients. A bag of flour got left on the counter.

Wait, that might work. If I throw some flour in their faces, it might buy us a few seconds. I grab it and put it in the backpack.

Still though, doesn't look like there's anything that could fend off a terminator teddy bear. Children's pizzerias don't usually have RPGs in stock.

I pull up the tablet when it bumps into something for a second. I hold my breath, trying to see if anyone heard that. Can't hear anything. Then again, that could pretty much mean anything here. What did I bump it into anyway? The fridge. One of those jumbo, industrial sized things that stores get. Looks like something you could store uranium in. And yet for some reason, they've got fridge magnets on them. The animatronics' stupid cartoon faces holding up a note asking for Tuesday off…

Wait. Magnets.

The animatronics have the best hardware available, for 1987. I've heard that you never want to put a magnet on an old computer, that it really messes them up. If they had something from today, I wouldn't risk it, but with those old chips, if I could get a magnet on them, that could do some damage. I pull down all four of the animatronics' faces and put them in the backpack. Wait, no. In the pocket. Don't want them screwing with the tablet.

Good. I'm armed with a rolling pin, flour, and fridge magnets.

Got to check the cameras again. It won't be too long before the animatronics realize what I'm doing and mess with them. Dining Area. Nothing. Show Stage. Freddy's still there, keeping an eye on the Dining Area. East Hall corner. Chica's glaring up at the camera. At least she's pretty far away. West Hall. Bonnie. That means I've just got to get past Freddy to get to the Restrooms.

I stay prone in the center of the lanes, between the pots and pans on the shelves. Can't touch them. They'll make a racket. I can't believe there's only one door here. Come to think of it, why would the animatronics bother coming in here at all? Why not just go down the halls? Maybe they like the racket. Maybe they think it scares me. It does.

I brush against a pan handle that's sticking out and it makes a squeak. I hold my breath. Check the tablet. They're still in their places. I keep the tablet up while I make my way to the door. Dining Area's still clear. Just got to stay out of sight of Freddy. I push the door open. No noise. Nothing at all. I can just make out Freddy's outline on stage. Everything's perfectly quiet. Hope it stays that way.

This time I do crawl, making my way along the wall to the Restroom. The sound I make as I scoot on the carpet is making me crazy.

I touch something against the wall. Something sticky. Oh God…the kids…

I look down, ready to choke the scream in my throat. I almost groan in disgust. It's just a slice of pizza that some kid dropped.

The East Hall door slams open. The air gets sucked into my throat but not into my lungs. I look back there and see Chica, just standing in the doorway. Don't move. Don't move. Don't let her see you.

Eyes still on Chica, trying not to think about Freddy, I move up some more. I reach the Restrooms. Got to stay quiet. Got to take it slow.

I'm almost slithering now. I look up and vaguely see the sign for Men's and Women's restrooms. Which one did they go into? Damn it, why didn't I check before leaving the office? Can't bring the tablet out now. Too close, Freddy and Chica might see the light. Think Mike, think. They would have wanted to get as far away from the animatronics as possible so they'd move further into the stalls, so I probably saw them move into the Men's bathroom.

Takes a minute just to move the few feet to the end of the hall. I get through the door and realize something else that's going to make things difficult. How am I going to find the kids here without making them freak out? If I just start opening stalls and find them, they'll probably scream out, bringing the animatronics here. If I try searching with a flashlight, even from all the way in here, Freddy will see it.

I whisper out.

"Psst. Psst."

Nothing. Am I even in the right room?

"Anyone there?"

Maybe I heard a hush sound.

"I'm here to help. We've got to get to the security office."

One of the stalls creeps open. I see a girl's face. She sees me, and a boy peeks out, looks like her brother. I wave over.

"C'mon."

They look around the Restroom. They probably don't want to leave. I don't blame them, but we've got to move. I wave to them again. They crawl out in front of me.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Mike. I'm the night guard here."

"Why weren't you out there when our friends got attacked?"

"I didn't see you on the cameras until it was too late."

"What the hell are those things anyway?" The boy says. "They can't be the real Freddy group right?"

"They are. They get put into free-roam mode at night to keep their servos from locking up. I just stay in the office until 6 AM every night and keep an eye on them and try to keep them from killing me."

"Why are they doing this?" The girl asks. She's nearly crying.

"Why the hell do you work here?" The boy asks.

Aren't those the f _ing questions of my life. I can only really answer one.

"They think you're an endoskeleton without a costume. If they see you, they stuff you inside one and kill you."

"Did you see Gabe?" The girl whispers to me.

"Who? Is he one of your friends?"

"Lee and I lost him when Carla was killed. We must have split up."

I look back to the entrance to the Dining Area. It's dark enough that I think I can use the tablet again. I try to flip through the cameras to find something that I missed, when I hear screams. One from Foxy, and one from Gabe.

"Ga…!"

I put my hand over the girl's mouth before she can scream out. She keeps trying to scream through my hand. I feel her tears on it. Oh man, please calm down. I'm sorry about your friend, but please calm down.

"Quiet!"

"He's getting killed! We can't just…"

The kid is talking so loud I think that Foxy might actually abandon Gabe and come for us. I kick the kid in the nuts, hard.

"Shut up! Just shut up! We can't do anything for him!"

The girl stops trying the scream out, but she's shaking a lot and won't stop crying. I look at the tablet again, at the Pirate Cove. I don't see Foxy, but I look on the floor of the stage and see a pool of blood coming out from under the curtain. Gabe probably thought he found a safe place. He must have been hiding under tables this whole time, and found his way into the cove. How long was he there? Did he even see Foxy? I don't think that there's any light in there. Maybe he saw the "Out of Order" sign and thought there wouldn't be anything in there. Maybe Foxy wasn't sure what to make of him at first. Maybe he was still scared. Maybe Gabe only just now looked up and saw Foxy, right before Foxy jammed his hook into his throat. Damn it. I might have been in the Dining Area with him.

Shut up. Shut up and think. The others. Where are the others? East Hall and East Hall corner, empty. We have an open lane. Where's Chica though? I get the sudden feeling of something crawling up my back as I check the Restroom camera. She's not there. Good. I feel like that's the kind of thing they'd do. Boxing us in. Kitchen. I hear her banging around in there. Could she be tracking where I've been? Can't think that. Can't think that, or I'll go crazy. West Hall. Bonnie's still there. How long has he been there? Show Stage. Still, Freddy hasn't moved. I think that it doesn't seem right, but I'm not going to get another chance like this. We've got to move, now while there's an open lane to the Office. I look at the remaining kids. The girl's shaking like mad. The kid looks angry at me, but more scared.

"Okay, look. The East hall's open now, but I don't know for how long. We're going to get out of here, and go down to my office, and close the doors." I don't tell them about the fact that the doors run on power and we won't be able to keep them closed. They don't need to know that yet. The kid's about to say something again. I think I know what he's going to say, what he thinks. "This place isn't safe! You're sitting ducks if they check in here. I don't want to hear anything else, got it?" They're both staring at me, tensed up. They've got it. "Go as fast as you can but keep your head down. Ready? Go!"

We slip out of the Restrooms. I don't think I care about stealth right now. I just want to get back in my office. They can hear the sound of us crouch-running on the floor. C'mon, move!

We've gotten past the Kitchen and Chica. I make it to the East Hall door first and push it open. The kids go through and I'm right on them. We're in the home stretch; we're going to make it! We're at the office! We're at the…door?

Why's the door down? I didn't put it down. It was open when I left. It's just these kids left, so there couldn't have been anyone else who came down this way, except for Chica.

Chica.

That _b__.

She's cut us off. We can't get into the office from here.


	5. Meal Time!

The girl pokes me in the back.

"What's wrong? Can't you open the door? Isn't this it?"

Yeah, this is it. This is it in a lot of ways.

"…No…You're not supposed to open them from this side. They're supposed to keep stuff out."

"Why are they closed though?" The kid's close to hysterics. Got to admire that he's not already there.

"She…she must have closed the door when I saw her go down here."

"She? That…Chica thing?"

"Yeah."

"What the hell are we supposed to do now?" The kid asks. He asks a lot of good questions that I don't have the answers to. What the hell _are_ we supposed to do? "We were fine before you came along!"

They're both crying now. Can't think of people with a better reason to. Somehow I have enough sense to know they can't do that now though. I grab them by the shoulders.

"We're…we're going to need to go around the other way…"

"The other way?" The girl asks.

Yeah. The other way. On the other side of the store, right by Chica, Freddy, Foxy, and Bonnie, in that order. I thought that those animatronics didn't know what they were doing, just searching around the restaurant aimlessly. I should have known by now that they're a lot smarter than that. Maybe they didn't know if I was going to go out after the kids, but when they did, they blocked off the exit they'd know I'd take, making me turn around and right in their sights.

"The West Hall. We just need to go back up and go along the back wall of the Dining Room, and go down the West Hall to get to the other side."

"What if they've locked that door too?" Damn, this kid's a genius. He's getting a much faster picture of how screwed we are than I would have in his position.

"They…they wouldn't have had enough time to do that yet. Bonnie hasn't gotten to the corner yet." Has he? Last I saw him, he was still in the West Hall. Blocking my brilliant escape strategy. I'll just have to get these kids to hide in the Kitchen again until we make a break for it. With Chica in the room. I'll just have to get these kids to hide in the Restrooms again until we can make a break for it. Right back where they started.

"You can't know that!" The girl says. "Why can't we just go out the front door?"

Why didn't I think of that? Oh, right.

"The entrance is locked from the outside, and Freddy will never let us get that far."

"I'm not going out there with you." The kid says. "You're crazy, you'll get us all killed."

Probably. I grab the kid by the front of his shirt.

"Look, if we stay here, we will die. We can't leave the store, and we can't stay in one place too long unless it's the office. It's the only place that the animatronics can't get into." At least for a while. "If the two of you want to live, you need to trust me on this."

The two are pretty p_ed at me, but they're more scared. At least I can work with that. I check the tablet again. I'm at 40% power and dropping fast with that door down. Pretty soon I won't be able to check the cameras at all. It's 3 PM. We still need to make it 3 hours. What we can do once we get in the office with less than 40%, I don't know, but it's our only shot. Chica's still in the Kitchen. How long has she been in there? Is she just having too much fun? I know better than that. Probably as soon as we come out the East Hall, she'll start chasing us. Bonnie, still in the West Hall. Still blocking our way out. Freddy, still on Show Stage. I'm starting to think that he just wants a good vantage point to watch us all kill ourselves. Foxy; Pirate Cove, with whatever's left of Gabe.

Got to keep it together. Can't just book it into the Dining Area. Got to wait out Bonnie somehow. Got to still keep it quiet and slow.

"Alright. We're going to go back to the Restrooms or Backstage and wait for Bonnie to move." Hopefully he won't move into wherever we're hiding. They don't raise anymore objections. I hope they haven't given up on us yet. My plan's stupid, I know, but it's the only one I've got.

Back down the hall. I kind of expect Chica or someone to break in while we're making our way out, but no one comes. What are they planning? I know they've got something. They're letting us through, I just know it. I open the door into the Dining Area. No noise. I hope that these two can keep it together. I'm not sure if I'll be able to for them. I go in, followed by the girl and her brother. We're prone, keeping our head below the tables.

I hear pots and pans banging together in the Kitchen. I move further away from the wall opposite from the Show Stage in case Chica sees us.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

I look up at the stage, towards Freddy's laugh. He's looking at us. He's been able to see us this whole time.

The Kitchen door slams open. We look back, and Chica's staring at us, cock-eyed. The girl whimpers a bit, or maybe that's me.

F_ stealth. They see us. I'm just going to run down the West Hall, and maybe we can duck under Bonnie…

Bonnie's in the West Hall entrance. His eyes are black.

They all see us.

We move into the center of the Dining Area. I look from animatronic to animatronic. Each time I look at them, they come closer, phasing or blinking through the rows of tables covered with party hats. Freddy's finally off the stage now. I never actually see them move. It's only when I take my eyes off one animatronic that they move closer. That gives me an idea.

"Stop! Don't look away from them, no matter what!"

When I have the kids stop, we're standing back-to-back in a triangle in the very center of the Dining Area. I'm facing Freddy, the kid's facing Bonnie, and the girl's facing Chica.

"Don't blink. Don't take your eyes off of them. They only move when you're not looking."

The two kids hold as still has statues at first. Freddy's grinning at me. The kids hold out as long as they can, but they start shaking again, pushing their backs against me. They're pushing too much and I try to hold my ground. My foot touches something. I steal a look down and see a can of hairspray. It probably fell out of that other girl's purse when Freddy killed her. Got to look up. Freddy's gotten closer. I try not to blink. I hope the kids aren't either. Those animatronics can make a blink last a long time.

I think I finally get it now, why they've been holding out where they were instead of hunting us down. They want this to be a big party. Three endoskeletons, one for each animatronic to play with. Freddy laughs again, without blinking or moving his mouth. The kids stir next to me.

"Don't look at him!" I say with my teeth gritted. "Don't look away from them!"

I don't want to die like this. Just watching these things get closer and closer until they're screaming in my face. I need to do something. The magnets are in my pockets. I don't know if they'll actually hurt these things, but at least they're something. I put my hand into my pocket, keeping my eye on Freddy. There are two magnets in my right pocket, next to my lighter. Maybe if I rush Freddy, I can put them on his face or something like that. But the kids will still have to deal with Bonnie and Chica. That won't work.

My life really is flashing before my eyes, but all I can remember is my job here. I remember my first night, not sure if the message that Phone Guy left me was a joke. Second night, thinking I could just keep the camera on the Show Stage all night until Phone Guy told me that there was a fourth animatronic. Fourth night, realizing that I'm all alone. Fifth night, the animatronics speaking to me for the first time. Weeks spent buckling under, hanging on to the hope of getting justice for Phone Guy and the others for the boss's indifference. Is this my life? Just fighting for life in this hell? It can't be! There's got to be more! I don't want to die here! My mind is racing. My thoughts keep going back to the hairspray. Why? Phone Guy's message seems to be mocking me.

"_They'll most likely see you as a metal endoskeleton without its costume on. Now since that's against the rules here at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, they'll probably try to…forcefully stuff you inside a Freddy Fazbear suit._"

"_Against the rules._"

The hairspray.

Whatever these things are, animatronics, or robots possessed by demons, they follow rules. If they see an endoskeleton without its costume, they have to put it back in a suit.

I try to keep my voice as quiet as possible. I don't want the animatronics to hear what I'm planning.

"Guys…listen. I'm going to try something. When I do, I want you to run to Freddy's right and left. Get away from here. Got it?"

The kids stop shaking.

I'll need to distract Bonnie and Chica somehow. Chica came out of the Kitchen before Bonnie got into the Dining Area, so she's probably gotten closer by now. Eyes still on Freddy, I reach behind me and unzip the backpack. I've got my hand on the flour.

"Go!"

The girl and his brother shoot past me as I spin to my right. Chica's right there, screaming as I smack the bag of flour in her face and spin around again. Her jaws bite down right where my head was. Bonnie runs into her the next second, blinded by the flour. I reach down and grab the hairspray with my right hand, my lighter in the left. Freddy's almost within grabbing distance when I flick the lighter on in front of the hairspray, spraying out its accelerants.

Freddy's engulfed by flames. For a brief second, I feel bliss, finally getting back at that bastard. Then Freddy screams at me. I realize that I've got a giant p_ed off flaming teddy in front of me.

No matter how mad he is, getting set on fire at least distracts him long enough for me to jump over one of the tables. I flip it over, trying to buy time before I'm grabbed by Freddy and burned alive.

The animatronics aren't just staying still anymore. This might be the first time I've ever seen them actually moving. For robots that are always so clunky on stage, they are moving so fluidly now, like their bodies are organic instead of mechanical. Chica kicks the table at me, which knocks me over the next table. Freddy picks up the first table and throws it away. I run and climb onto the stage, hoping that I can buy some time while they're trying to climb up it.

What the hell am I looking at? I've learned that there are two kinds of fear. Up until now, I've been experiencing one; watching and waiting while predators get closer and closer to their prey. Now, I see the other, watching monsters that are tearing apart anything in their way to get to me and tear me apart, and in front of them is Freddy, his suit on fire and his eyes glaring up at me. They jump on stage, faster than I did. I back into the wall.

The smoke from Freddy's suit finally activates the sprinklers. The animatronics stop when the water hits them. Freddy's fur is finally put out, but I've done what I wanted to do. The water from the sprinklers has put out the fire, but it's also peeling away at the damaged remains of his suit. I think the sudden cold that followed the extreme heat has done more damage to the suit then the burning does. Freddy's features begin to rot and fall away. He looks at his hand, and the fur falls off. Soon, his entire face falls away. I see now what's underneath. It almost looks like a human skeleton, but blockier. It still has eyelids though, and that's how I know how angry Freddy is now. Whatever high I felt I had gets blasted away as the endoskeleton grabs me around the throat and starts to squeeze.

But then Freddy's arms are pulled back, by Bonnie and Chica. Freddy writhes and screams at me for a few seconds until he sees that he's being pulled back. He looks to his right and left and sees Chica and Bonnie holding him. I notice white swelling appearing all over them; dough made from the flour they're covered in and the water from the sprinklers. They scream.

They're like wild animals, clawing and screeching at each other. Bonnie and Chica are dragging Freddy away, to Backstage.

I can't believe it. I finally got him. I've killed Freddy, using his own friends.

Somehow I still have the sense to realize that as soon as Bonnie and Chica re-stuff Freddy into a suit, they're going to come after me and the kids again. While the animatronics are distracted, I dive off the stage and hide behind one of the tables. I try to look around for the kids. I don't see them, and they're not coming to me.

"Guys? C'mon, we've got a chance now!"

No one answers. Bonnie and Chica have gotten Freddy to the door to Backstage. He's clawing at the doorway, trying to hold on. I don't have much time. I do what comes by instinct by now and turn on the tablet. It turns automatically to the Show Stage. I flip to the Dining Area, hoping to get a better angle. I only see myself, and I look up at the camera. I flip through the Restrooms and Kitchen. Nothing. I go to the Backstage camera, partly just to watch Chica and Bonnie prying Freddy from the door. Oh God.

I see them, hiding behind one of the tables. They're right in the same room as the animatronics. I didn't think to tell them to not go to the Backstage. F_ing stupid!


	6. Scream at this, monster!

I must really be stupid, because I'm going towards the Backstage myself. I crouch down near the door. Freddy's still too frantic trying to hold on to notice me. Bonnie and Chica grab hold of his head and pull him away. I slip in while their backs are turned, crouching behind the first table that I see. Freddy's screaming and fighting so loud now though that I can't focus enough to look for the kids. I peek around the table.

Chica and Bonnie have Freddy by one arm each, one hand holding an arm and the other pushing him into the suit they've brought out. Something doesn't seem right about the way that they're moving. There are two of them, but it looks as if Freddy could break away from them any moment. I hear weird sounds coming from them, like the sound of car axles squealing. I think that the dough is clogging up their gears and making it harder for them to move. Still though, together, they're stronger than Freddy. His screeches get louder and more high-pitched the further he gets pushed into the suit. I hear metal scraping against metal and bending, until I hear one final screech and a crunch. Freddy's quiet now. Bonnie and Chica are pushing his arms and legs into the suit. I don't think that they're in the right order, though.

I got to focus. The kids. Where are the kids?

Right next to me. I turn to my right and see them staring at something in front of them. I smell it before I see it. A spare Freddy suit is in front of us, a kid's eyeballs hanging from the head by their stalks.

I should be used to this. I should be able to look at this and not freak out, but it's the first time I've seen one of the animatronic's victims in front of me like this. I manage to snap out of it. The kid's just staring at the eyes. His sister's trying to look away, and she sees me. It's like she's trying to ask me what to do next. The animatronics are finishing their work with Freddy. All I can think to do is to book it out of here. I tap the kid on the shoulder to try to snap him out of it.

"Aaahhh…"

The kid barely whispers it out, but as soon as he does, the animatronics stop moving. The girl puts her hand over her brother's mouth. He's staring around the room, his eyes bugging out. I hear footsteps. I take my back away from the table and peak underneath it. Bonnie's purple feet are standing in front of the table. He touches something above us on the table. I look up, and I see a Freddy Fazbear head. From my angle, I can see Bonnie's ears just over the head. Bonnie thinks that the head said something. These animatronics have a different standard for what's alive and dead. They haven't found us yet, but it won't take Bonnie long to realize that an empty Freddy head can't talk, and with him standing there, and Chica looking at us, we won't be able to run out.

Still though, if Bonnie's just staring at the Freddy head now, expecting it to say something, he might not see it coming if I try something. The head is on my side of the table. I've got my hands in my pocket. I've got to angle this just right…

I jump up, my head behind Freddy's, and I swing my arms around, clapping fridge magnet's on the sides of Bonnie's head.

Chica shrieks. I have no idea what I'm doing, but I shout out, picking up Freddy's head and throwing it at her. It hits her in the face and she catches it in her hands. She looks at it. She's given me an opening. I take out another fridge magnet, running at her crouched and jam it at her bib, right where I think her central motor is. It sticks. She drops the head, but before she can replace it with mine, I jam the last magnet between her eyes, screaming at her face.

I stumble back and trip. I'm staring at Chica. She isn't doing anything. She's just standing there with her cock-eyed expression. I look to Bonnie. He's still leaning at the table, his mouth hanging open at where Freddy's head was. The kids get away from him and stand next to me.

"Are…are they dead?"

I don't think that they can die. They're animatronics. They're already dead. Still though, this is how they usually work, standing still and waiting for someone to take their eyes off of them.

But they seem different now. Their eyes aren't following us. They're just standing there.

I hear a noise from Bonnie. I grab the kids by the arms, ready to run, but Bonnie just tips forward, head-first over the table. He's still in the leaning position, angled over the table and facing the floor.

I can't believe it. The magnets actually worked. I've screwed up their computer chips. I've beaten them. Months of being hunted, and I finally beat them.

There's a noise. It's me laughing. I just laugh and laugh. I point at the animatronics.

"F_ you Bonnie, f_ you Chica, and F_ YOU FREDDY!"

I keep laughing until I get tired, leaning against the wall. The kids are looking from the animatronics to me.

"C'mon, let's go." I finally managed to get out.

We go out into the Dining Area and head right. I wonder if the West Hall door is down. Who cares. I got them. I finally got them. We're at the Hall entrance. The kids still look scared, but they'll get over it. This has got to be the happiest day of my life; I can even hear someone singing…oh…

"Da da dum dum dum, da da dum dum diddily doom doom diddily doom…"

We all turn around. Foxy's there. As he looks at us, his eye patch lifts up. There's blood dripping from his hook. The girl gives a small cry.

"Move. Now, move!"

The kids run out ahead of me. I stay behind for just a second as I keep the door open. As soon as we pass through I slam the door shut, but I can hear Foxy slam it back open as he runs behind us.

Ahead of me, the kid tries to open the door to the Storage Closet. His sister pulls him away and towards the right room; the office door is still open.

Why the hell am I moving so slow? Foxy's able to come down this hall in a second, but it feels like I'm taking hours just to cross this few feet. Foxy's right behind me.

I'm not thinking at all. I'm just processing information: the sound of Foxy's footsteps getting louder and louder, the site of the open Supply Closet. I see a bottle of soap on one of the counters. As I run by it I grab it. I unscrew the cap and spill it on the floor behind me. I can feel Foxy's hook behind me pushing the air out in front of it. I dodge to the left. Foxy misses his swing and slides on the soapy floor. He slides out in front of me and crashes into the wall. I'm at the door, I get in!

There's a tearing sound. Foxy's stuck his hook into my backpack. He's pulling me back!

"No! Not like this!"

Not when I was so close!

This is the only thought that I have. I'm still operating completely on instinct, like a rat running from a fox. I swing my arms around. I hit a button on my left as Foxy's pulling me back. There's a loud click. Foxy's pulling me down to the floor. There's a loud crunch. Foxy's bitten my head off.

But I'm still thinking. I'm on the floor of my office. The girl and her brother are staring at me. No, not at me, something next to me. I look, and Foxy's face is on the floor next to me. He shrieks. I shriek. I writhe out of the backpack and stand up, knocking the fan off the desk as I back away. Foxy's pinned underneath the door, swinging his hook around.

I shout again. I'm done with these f_ing robots!

I push the door button again. It comes up. Foxy's been practically cut in half. He's still writhing around. I kick him in the face, somehow avoiding getting my foot bitten off or impaled. The upper part of his body is knocked back. I push the button again. Foxy's chest is crushed. I push the button. The door comes up. Foxy's twitching. I push it again. His head is crushed, his loose jaw finally severed completely.


	7. Going to make things right

I should have seen this coming. The two kids and I waited two more hours before we could get out. We didn't use the doors, but I kept on looking into the Backstage area on my tablet, just to be sure that Freddy, Bonnie, and Chica were still there. I wouldn't have put it past them to have come back to life. When we finally managed to get out, I called the kid's parents. They came by and picked up their kids. The day shift came by. I told them what had happened. They called Mr. Faz first, and then the police. The next we know, Fazzy's filing charges against Kaylee, Lee, and I for breaking and entering and destruction of property. I got fired of course, but that doesn't make up for the fact that he's trying to sue us and send us to prison for defending ourselves from those animatronics. I'd have thought that he couldn't sink any lower, but that's still not the worst of it. Three kids were killed that night, and he's getting his lawyers to cover it all up, saying that they were all accidental deaths. Accidental deaths. I'd buy the idea of the animatronics being accidentally turned on, Carla just being in front of Freddy when his mouth started moving, and Gabe falling onto Foxy's hook as possible accidents. Sure. But how do they expect anyone to buy Pat getting stuffed inside of a Freddy Fazbear suit as accidental? I guess they're not, but the security footage of everything happening has mysteriously been lost.

No one believes Kaylee and Lee's story, of course. The more frantic they get, trying to get people to listen to how they were hunted by homicidal animatronics, the more the police think that they were just high. I didn't even try to tell anyone what actually happened once I figured out what Fazzy was doing. I know no one will believe me, not with the crazy s _ I've been through.

Not to say that I haven't done anything for us. I know enough not to tell people about what's gone on in my shifts. As soon as I heard Fazzy was trying to level charges against us, I sent everything I've been gathering on the store to the press. Missing memos, reports, phone conversations, everything that I've got is on the 8'o clock news. Fazzy's up to his ears in reporters and parents trying to make him talk about what he could have done differently; shoddy security, cover-ups, conspiracy theorist wet dreams. But that's all it is. Theories and rumors. That's all I've managed to get against the company. It's enough to keep them off of my and the kid's backs for now, but as soon as the frenzy that I started ends, they'll have us in court. No one will believe that teenagers were murdered in something as friendly as a kid's pizzeria, no matter how much the company's been involved in over the years.

Mr. Faz even had the gall to re-build those animatronics. I actually tried to talk to him, to make him see sense; that having those animatronics around is only going to cause problems for him, but he just wouldn't listen. He claimed that it would just be cheaper to repair the old ones that I 'so maliciously and callously destroyed' and get a new night guard.

I'm at my desk in my apartment, doing some shopping on a chemical supplier site when I get a call. I know who it is before I pick it up.

"Hey Kaylee."

"…Hey Mike."

"How's Lee?"

"That's just it Mike, he…can't sleep. We had to get out night lights that we haven't used since we were kids. Lee still thinks that if we turn off the lights, one of them will get us…I still think that too." She's only just holding herself together. She's a tough girl to have gotten through this.

"I don't really know what to say. I've been having that problem for a while. I guess I just got used to it. Have you talked to your parents about it?"

Kaylee groans over the phone. "Of course we've talked to them! But they don't believe us! No one does! Everyone at school thinks that we're crazy! We…we can't talk to anyone about this, and we keep getting phone calls from those lawyers. They keep on asking us questions, threatening us."

Fazzy's got a lot of nerve to kick at these two while they're down. Kaylee's breathing hard on the other end. She was practically shouting at me. I give her a minute to calm down, and she starts talking again, whispering.

"Are you sure about this? What you're planning?"

Yeah I've been sure. I've thought about it ever since I started working at Freddy's, but Mr. Fazz covering up three murders right in front of me, and continuing on like nothing's wrong, only to put it all on some new night guard; that's what's convinced me.

"…I've got to do this, Kaylee. I don't know if I'll be able to end Freddy's like this, but I want to make sure Fazzy has to answer for the first night guard, your friends, and everyone before them." Look at me on my pedestal, talking about justice with what I've suggested to this girl that's been through hell. "You and Lee don't need to be a part of this if you don't want to, Kaylee. I think I can do it on my own."

There's silence for a minute. I think I can actually hear Kaylee chewing on her lip.

"No. If…if you think this'll make things right with Gabe and our friends, I want in. Lee still wants in to. It's…it's the only thing that keeps him going."

Jeez. I can't believe Lee is still all in.

I can't help but feel responsible for those kids after what they've been through. There's not much I can really do for them, but I think that being someone for them to talk to does help them. Lee and Kaylee have been so scared and angry. They were talking about what they think they should be doing, telling more people about what happened, trying to stop the store's reopening, dismantling the animatronics while they're still damaged, but so much of what they suggested seemed so crazy to me, that it would get them killed. Sometimes I worry that that's what they want, to make it all end. I had to tell them what I was planning, just to give them an alternative to committing suicide.

"Mike, it's just…does it have to be the masks?"

I look under the bed where the box is. Inside is something I managed to pick up from Freddy's before I was fired.

"Yes, Kaylee. It's the only way we'd be able to make it work."

"I wish that it was something else…"

"It's going to be over soon, Kaylee. I just need to bring one more person into this."


	8. Meeting the new guy

I feel that what I'm doing is creepy, but it's nothing compared to what Tom Vreene's been going through the past couple of days.

I got to the street across Freddy's at 5 AM, passing the time with a Marlboro pack. Sometimes, when I look into the restaurant, I think I can see the animatronics up and running again. Tom's been doing a pretty good job so far, but I think I can tell with how much the animatronics are moving around that he's slipping. He won't last much longer.

Mr. Faz drives up to the store at 6 in his Corvette, humming the Toreador March. I've got a hoodie on so he doesn't see me, but the fact that he just drives by without even seeing me just makes me want to stick a nail in his head. He unlocks the front door and Tom practically leaps out of the store.

"Hey, sport. How's the job treating you?"

He says this, but only in passing, just walking into the store without waiting for a reply. Tom though stops him before he goes in, grabbing frantically at his suit.

"Please...please, you've got to listen to me…"

Faz backs away a few steps.

"Whoa, hold on there, sport!"

Tom doesn't let up.

"Please, sir, please, the animatronics…"

"Oh, having fun with Freddy and the gang?" Faz says cheerfully through his s_-eating smile.

"They're trying to kill me!" Tom bursts out. "They wander around and try to get into the office! Why haven't you gotten someone to check on them? There's something wrong with them!"

Faz gives a laugh that I swear Freddy copies.

"Oh…oh, son. You've been hearing the stories, haven't you?" He gives Tom a sympathetic but condescending smile. He claps his hand on Tom's shoulder, making Tom flinch. "You don't really believe such ludicrous rumors, do you?"

"But…but they're…they've been…"

"Son, really? You think that the animatronics stuff people inside suits and kill them? Don't you see how ridiculous that idea is?"

Tom gets angry and shrugs Faz's hand off.

"If they're not true, why do you have me in an office with doors like that?" He lifts his hands up as if to grab his head. "Why on earth do you have doors that run off of power, anyway?"

Faz gives Tom a disappointed look. He explains, as if to a child. "Now sport, this is a business. I can't just splurge on anything I see fit." He shrugs. "Freddy and the band just need some time to stretch their legs once in a while. We need someone to keep an eye on them to make sure they don't get into trouble." He smiles and taps Tom on his nametag. "You've got an important job to do. Now, you go home and get some sleep. I look forward to seeing you in the reopening."

"But…please, you've got to…"

Faz doesn't hear the last bit as he walks into the restaurant. Tom stares after him and leans against the wall in exhaustion.

"No…no…I just don't want…I can't…"

He walks into the parking lot, staring at the ground.

"You're the new night guard, right?"

Tom jumps and spins around, seeing me with my hoodie down. He's got his fist over his chest.

"I'm Mike. I was the night guard before you."

Tom stands there, hyperventilating until he begins to realize what I just said. Then, he opens his eyes wide.

"You're…you're Mike Schmidt…"

"Yeah."

Tom grabs my shoulders, like I'm his last hope. He's right.

"You've…you've got to help me…you've got to tell Mr. Faz what's been going on in there!"

Poor kid. He doesn't get it yet.

"Don't you think I've done that already? Why do you think I got fired?"

"But…but…those things….the animatronics…"

"They're evil, yeah."

Tom grips me tighter. His fingernails are digging into my arms, but I don't say anything. I feel like this guy needs a stress reliever.

"We've got to tell someone! We've got to do something! Those things aren't safe!"

"Don't you think I know that? I was here when three kids were killed. I had to fight those things off, and Fazzy just covered it all up and fired me for everything I did."

"But…maybe, if you tell people about what went on...I mean…you knew, right? You know what those things are…what they do?"

I sigh. Of course I know. How could I not? "Yeah, I did."

He backs off and points at me.

"But…but you never told anyone about the animatronics. I've read in the paper that you didn't give a statement."

"I gave a statement, Tom. I told them once what happened. They laughed, and asked me what really happened. I said nothing else. Those two kids that lived said exactly the same thing, but when they wouldn't change their story, the police, lawyers, and reporters all said that they were crazy, drunk, or high. Do you really think that if you say anything to anyone that they won't say the same thing about you?"

Tom stutters a bit more. He's close to crying. He breaks down, and gets on his knees, grabbing me by the front of my hoodie.

"Please…you've got to help me…there's got to be something you can do...I'll do anything you want! Anything! Just get me out of this!"

I give Tom a minute to calm down before I say anything.

"Really, Tom? Anything?"

"Anything! I'll do anything! I'll give you whatever you want! I'll pay you, I'll be your slave, just…just help me!"

"Pay me? Really? You know I know exactly what you get paid, right?"

Tom groans and sits against his car.

"Tell me, Tom, why don't you just quit?"

"They've…they've got me on contract. I can't leave this job for two months." Or until he dies.

A contract. It's incredible what people can do with a piece of paper, what they can make people do.

"I need you to think carefully, Tom. Are you really willing to do anything? There's nothing that could hold you back?"

Tom looks up, a light in his eyes. He realizes that I'm giving him a way out. He breathes out.

"Anything."

I consider Tom for a minute. I remember when I was him, stuck in a job that was going to eventually kill me. I wish someone had come along for me back then. With as desperate as I was, I would have done exactly what I'm about to ask Tom to do.

"I've got an idea Tom, but I need your help to make it work."

Tom stands up, looking me in the eye.

"What do you want?"

I look at Freddy's, and back to Tom.

"Let's get a coffee. You're going to need to stay focused for this."

About five minutes later, we're at a Starbucks, and I'm explaining my plan to Tom.

"Mr. Faz invited you to come to the grand reopening, right?"


	9. I've got a mask for you

Tom's driving. I'm in the front with him, Lee and Kaylee behind us. Every now and then Tom and the kids exchange looks, uncertain of each other. At least they all trust me. I look at my watch. 10 PM.

"I think we should put them on now."

No one is happy as I pull the box out and open it. Freddy's face stares up at me. I've decided to bite the bullet and take Freddy's mask. Makes sense anyway, me being sort of the leader here. I pass the Bonnie and Chica masks back to Lee and Kaylee, respectively. Foxy's mask is one of two left in the box. I don't want Tom to put it on until we make it to the restaurant, don't want him to get into an accident. Lee and Kaylee are both staring at their masks awkwardly. I don't feel too comfortable about this myself, but Fazzy can't recognize us at the party, and everyone is going to be wearing these masks.

Guess I can't expect anyone else to be willing to put their masks on if I'm not. I take one more look at Freddy's face until I flip it over and put it on. I don't look at the kids. I don't think that they'll want Freddy to be looking at them. I hear Lee taking a breath behind me, like he's about to jump into the pool. I can see Bonnie's ears sticking up in the rear view mirror. Kaylee puts Chica's mask on next. I glance over at Tom, but he's looking determinately away. He probably doesn't want to think that he's in the car with three animatronics at once. I look in the back seats. For a second, I think about jumping out of the moving car, seeing Bonnie and Chica staring wide-eyed back at me. I look away. Don't want to scare the kids. One thing I make sure I don't do is look directly at myself in the mirror. I don't think that I'd be able to take seeing my eyes sticking out of Freddy's face.

"We're here." Tom says.

We pull into the parking lot. Inside the store, there are multicolor lights blaring out in poor rhythm with whatever Freddy and the band are playing. There's commotion coming from inside the store from the racket all the spoiled kids are making. If you want to get into the opening night, you either had to get a special invitation, like Tom got or the ones he scrounged up for us along with our fake name tags (I went with Peter Ganes), or have parents rich enough to get you a VIP ticket. I can't imagine how bored those parents are in there. I wonder if any just left their kids behind to avoid listening to those cheesy animatronics.

We get out of the car. I offer Tom the box. He looks at it apprehensively.

"You need to put it on now, Tom."

"Do…do I have to?"

Yes. We need the full band together. I think I had a good reason earlier, but that's the only reason I can think of right now.

"It'll be over soon."

Tom's hands are shaking as he pulls out Foxy's mask. He puts it on. We're all together. I put the box in my backpack with the bottle that I got from the chemical supplier and the rag.

We head into the store, Tom first. We need to make it looks like we're some friends Tom's invited. Fazzy meets us at the door, clapping Tom on the shoulder.

"You're late, sport! Thought you weren't coming!"

Tom tries to stutter out something, but Fazzy's not really paying attention. He turns to us and smiles.

"These your friends, sport? Glad you all could come. Come and have some pizza, on the house!"

He says nothing else and walks away. I'm certain forgetting about us the second he moves on. We don't say anything else to each other. We just go into the Dining Area.

What I see nearly breaks whatever sanity I have left.

Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy, everywhere. Climbing over tables, screaming, eating pizza. They have the same shrieks…

No. They're kids, just kids having fun with those creepy masks. I look to my right, though, and I see the genuine articles. Freddy, Chica, and Bonnie all on stage, perfectly restored, singing out kid-friendly versions of "Can't Touch This." My three friends tense up next to me when they see them. Lee takes a step back.

"I can't do this…I just can't do this."

I grab his arm. There's no going back now.

"Just get to a table, and don't look at them. They're not dangerous now."

I'm not certain I believe myself, but I have to.

We manage to get to a table in the back East corner, away from where all the kids are crowding. Some of the parents that have taken shelter from the food fights look at us. I smile through the mask and wave. They look away. Don't worry about us; we're just Freddy and his pals. Ignore the fact that I've got a rag and a bottle of chloroform in my backpack. I can't believe it was so easy to bring this thing in. The fact that I was able to do it just shows how little Fazzy actually cares about the well-meaning of these kid's lives. Those kids that Golden Freddy got, were they the only ones? They were the only ones that I've heard about, and that probably means Fazzy covered up ten others.

We're attracting too much attention to ourselves. I go and get a pizza to blend in more. No one wants to eat it.

"C'mon, guys. We got to do this."

I lift my mask up just enough so that my mouth isn't covered and take a bite of cardboard. For some reason, it's not as bad as I remember.

"Guys, eat the pizza."

The others follow suit, grimacing as they force the pizza into their mouths. They have to really struggle to eat, sometimes just holding the pizza in front of their mouths, not wanting to take the bite. It's just as well. The fact that our taste buds have developed beyond the level of kids at least lets any other parents know that we're just normal people. We look like a bunch of teenagers that came here because we didn't know what else to do with ourselves.

An hour passes by before parents get fed up and drag their screaming kids out. Fazzy's last to leave besides us. He comes up to the table.

"Hey kid, your friends are going to have to leave soon."

Tom/Foxy nods. I get up.

"Say, thanks for the party. It was nice. Hey though, we accidentally got an extra mask, do you want it?"

I don't give Fazzy a chance to reply. I take the last mask out, the Golden Freddy mask. I hold it over his face, with the chloroform-soaked rag inside. He struggles a bit, but is conscious enough for us to fake him being able to walk down the hall. Part of me asks why, but of course, I don't want to animatronics to know what's going on.


	10. Welcome to Freddy's, Mr Faz

Frank Faz woke up groggy. The last thing he remembered was that kid's friend putting the Golden Freddy mask on him. He didn't like that one, not with the things it did, not with the memories and lawsuits associated with it.

Where was he? It seemed dark here. He felt a faint breeze of air on his face. He pulled himself together, and saw the fan. The Freddy poster was on his left. Now he realized he was in the security office. That wasn't a good place to be. That wasn't where the manager of a store like Freddy's was supposed to be, that was for pasty-faced teens that he could just put in the chair and forget like a penny that ended up in the dirty clothes. Faz was about to get up when he heard the phone ring. He didn't pick it up. It wasn't his concern. He was at the East door when he realized something. The lights were off in the store. That wasn't good. He looked at his watch. 12 AM. Oh God.

The phone clicked, and Frank got a message.

"Hello Mr. Faz. It's been a while since we last talked. Last time was when those kids were killed. That might seem like a while to you, but believe me, for me it's like it was yesterday."

That voice…Frank had heard it before, but he couldn't remember where or when. Whatever it was, he had always thought that it was of no significance to him, but here, for some reason, it meant a lot.

"For months, I've literally risked my life watching over Freddy and his friends, in exchange for a paycheck of $120 a week. That's how it was for me at first anyway. But after my first week, and I learned about how you covered up the disappearance of the night guard before me, and who knows how many others before, I decided that I had another job to do. I looked into your store."

Frank was scared. The store wasn't safe at night, he knew that.

"I saw the reports of kids going missing, getting hurt here. At first, I thought that it was all just tragic, some maniac coming in here and hurting those kids. I can't really blame you for that. But then you just kept on restarting the store, no matter what happened, not matter what happened to the animatronics. Things eventually got so bad that you actually gave the night guards protocol about how to try to survive. But they kept dying. I suppose that's not even really your fault. But, what you've been doing, sweeping it all under the rug, getting your lawyers to shut up anyone who might try to look at the store and see that it's a death trap. How many people have you led to their deaths, Fazzy?"

Frank was starting to see what this was about. There were a lot of night guards, when he thought about it, lives he just whittled away at his convenience.

"What is wrong with you to have a store set up like this, where guards just come, but never leave? How do you not see the problem with that?"

"Just let me out!" Faz shouted.

The recording continued regardless.

"But, even that, I think, I could have dealt with. But when those kids died on my shift, I think I realized just the kind of man you are. Three kids, yeah maybe three troublemakers, but three kids were killed horribly here, and the two that were left were put through hell. And then, after they got out, you kicked them while they were down. You tried to make the world ignore the hell you put them through. You just don't see just how bad you made it for them, for me. Well, I think I've got a way to make you see."

Oh God. He couldn't mean…

"I want to see if you can last one night of the hell you've put me through for months. One night. Maybe, if you survive,"

If I survive?

"You might see sense and close this place down permanently. But, if you don't make it, well…you've shown me that there's one place that you can hide a body that no one will ever look."

The suits…the empty suits...!

"The funny thing about this is that your own store is going to cover up what happens to you, just like you've done to countless others. But hey, maybe I'm being pessimistic. I've got something you'll need to hear:

'_Welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, a magical place for kids and grown-ups alike, where fantasy and fun come to life. Fazbear Entertainment is not responsible for damage to property or person. Upon discovering that damage or death has occurred, a missing persons report will be filed within 90 days, or as soon as property and premises have been thoroughly cleaned and bleached, and the carpets have been replaced.'_

So, yeah, I know that sounds bad, but you know what Mr. Faz? I'm not going to b.s. you. It is. Have fun!"

The message clicked and ended. Faz's heart was beating in his chest. He looked around frantically. The tablet was on the desk. He turned it on, and the camera of the Show Stage popped up. Only Freddy was on stage, and he was looking right at Faz. Frantically, he searched through the cameras. God…Bonnie was in the West Hall corner. Faz shut the left door. Chica…East Corner? Faz shut the right door. All of the animatronics were staring at him. Even Foxy was peeking out of his cove.

"It's…it's alright…I'll just have to keep these doors closed. They can't get in if the doors are closed."

That was right. Faz didn't even need to look at the cameras. Sure the doors ran on power, but those old guards were always just kidding around, surely there was enough power to last the night, right?


	11. Hello, my name is Freddy

My alarm goes off. I turn it off, and I stretch my arms out.

"Hello world!"

Time for breakfast. In the fridge, I'm well stocked with sausage, pepperoni, and cheese pizza. It's such a hard choice. I decide to go with one of each. As I'm heating up the pieces in the microwave, I go and pick up the newspaper. The front page says 'Frank Faz still missing, Investigators baffled.' Such a shame. I hope they find that man soon.

After breakfast, I go and brush my teeth. I look at myself in the mirror. I sigh. My suit just doesn't work for me, this flimsy, inanimate piece of plastic held on by string tied around my head. Oh well, all the more reason to keep working on the new suit.

For the past few weeks, I've been scrounging around for bits of fur and wiring, salvaged from teddy bears. I'm almost finished with the head by now. Soon, I'll have a complete suit. This mask'll just have to do for now.

The doorbell rings. I know who it is. I'm greeted at the door by Bonnie and Chica. Foxy's hanging back a little bit from the others. Poor guy. He's always been a little shy, but he took a real turn for the worse when we had to fix his endoskeleton a few weeks ago. But, really, what else could we do? Who ever heard of a pirate having two hands? We needed to give him back his hook, but in order to do that, we had to saw off the hand that was still on his endoskeleton. The strange thing was what he kept on saying though. He kept on saying;

"I don't want to be Foxy! I don't want to be Foxy!"

What sense did that make? He's Foxy. I'm Freddy. Chica is Chica, and Bonnie is Bonnie.

I can't say that everything is just fine with the rest of us, though. We've all been quite out of shape. Chica and Bonnie in particular were really skinny for a while. Bonnie still seems a bit short for some reason. It's been getting better though once we were back on our diet. After eating a few pizzas, I'm back to my jolly old self. Of course though, all our faces still don't work right. Our endoskeleton mouths move, but not on our actual faces. I'm certain things will be just fine as soon as our suits are ready.

"Hiya, guys! How are you holding up, Foxy?"

Foxy's gripping the wrist beneath his hook.

"I…I…" He looks to Bonnie and Chica, who are staring at him. "Argh! I be right as rain, you old landlubber!"

"Good to hear, Foxy. You all ready to practice?"

Bonnie holds up his guitar.

"You bet, Freddy!"

The next hour we spend practicing, and we have a rocking time. Even Foxy gets into it. Next, we get to work on our suits. It's been kind of tricky to get the right color fur for Foxy and Bonnie, but we're making good progress. Faster than you can say 'pizza', we'll have the perfect suits, and we won't have to walk around like endoskeletons anymore. We're going to have some rocking performances real soon. I don't have as much fun sewing as I do singing and eating pizza, but it's nice enough. I pass the time humming a tune, a little number called the Toreador March.


End file.
